With the ACT being a test that more and more students take every year, the ACT has offered a new way for students to be able to take the test. But does this new way of taking it online really help benefit them in the future? Or is it simply a different way in which students can take the test? Because of how lengthy the ACT is, it might seem ideal for students to take it online on a computer, except that you still have to travel to the school. And while it would be nice to take the test at home and not have to worry about being late or showing up to the wrong school, it simply isn’t an option with today’s technology. 

From act.org, “Starting February 2024, ACT will offer an online testing option at select locations nationwide.” 

Additionally, because of how many students are taking the test nationwide, it will be interesting to see how many students end up taking the test this way instead of the normal paper and pencil. One bonus of taking the ACT online is that students are now given the ability to be able to highlight text and do much more than they would have on just paper and pencil. 

“An online option allows us to provide additional accessibility features, including support for screen reader users, text-to-speech functionality, zoom, and answer masking. These are not “features” for many of our students, but necessities for equal access. By offering an online option, we are able to help more students meet their goals for academic and career success.”

Not only does this help many students who need these options of test taking, but it allows students these resources whether they might need them or not, granting students to meet their academic goals to the best of their ability. As for students who decide to take the optional essay at the end of the test, typing on a computer grants them the ability to write more clearly and the ability to delete and add what they feel necessary, instead of simply marking out what they might have previously written in pencil. In the end, this new way of taking the ACT is to give students as many resources as they might need in order to be successful on this test and do the best they can do.